Serendipities: Language & Lunacy.
by ECO, Umberto
- Used
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket
- ISBN 10
- 0231111347
- ISBN 13
- 9780231111348
- Seller
-
Springfield, Massachusetts, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Synopsis
Serendipities is a careful unraveling of the fabulous and the false, a brilliant exposition of how unanticipated truths often spring from false ideas. From Leibniz's belief that the I Ching illustrated the principles of calculus to Marco Polo's mistaking a rhinoceros for a unicorn, Umberto Eco offers a dazzling tour of intellectual history, illuminating the ways in which we project the familiar onto the strange to make sense of the world. Uncovering layers of mistakes that have shaped human history, Eco offers with wit and clarity such instances as Columbus's voyage to the New World, the fictions that grew around the Rosicrucians and Knights Templar, and the linguistic endeavors to recreate the language of Babel, to show how serendipities can evolve out of mistakes. With erudition, anecdotes, and scholarly rigor, this new collection of essays is sure to entertain and enlighten any reader with a passion for the curious history of languages and ideas.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Grendel Books, ABAA/ILAB (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 24274
- Title
- Serendipities: Language & Lunacy.
- Author
- ECO, Umberto
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket
- ISBN 10
- 0231111347
- ISBN 13
- 9780231111348
- Publisher
- Columbia University Press,
- Place of Publication
- NY:
- Date Published
- 1998
- Keywords
- 0231111347, LANGUAGE, Italian Literature, TRANSLATION
Terms of Sale
Grendel Books, ABAA/ILAB
Please contact us to reserve books in advance. We will hold books for ten days, pending payment. All orders should be prepaid. Payment may be made by personal check, money order, or PayPal. Institutions can be billed to suit their needs. Massachusetts residents please add 6.25% sales tax. Domestic orders are shipped via the U.S. Postal Service (Priority Mail) starting at $15.00 for the first book. Shipping cost may be slightly higher depending on weight of book and shipping destination. Media Mail shipping rate is also available: $7.00 for the first book and $2.00 for each additional. Overseas orders are billed at cost. Books may be returned within 10 days for whatever reason, provided their condition has not been altered. We request that you notify us in advance of returns.
About the Seller
Grendel Books, ABAA/ILAB
About Grendel Books, ABAA/ILAB
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